Lerøy aims for NOK 1bn savings this year
Company is also targeting 25,000 tonne harvest increase by 2030
Salmon farming heavyweight Lerøy Seafood Group aims to make cost savings of NOK 1 billion (£78.7 million) this year, it said ahead of a capital markets event being held today and tomorrow.
Most of the savings – NOK 850m – will be made in the company’s farming segment in Norway, through lower feed costs, higher personnel productivity and optimised efficiency and costs in shielding operations.
A further NOK 100m in savings will be made in the running of the group, NOK 80m in Lerøy’s value-added processing, sales and distribution (VAP S&D) segment, and NOK 10m in the wild catch segment.
Intensive investment
Lerøy, which owns a half share in Scotland’s second largest salmon producer, Scottish Sea Farms, is now coming off an intensive investment cycle in smolt capacity and shielding technology, as well as upgrades of processing facilities, the company said in a press release.
These investments have strengthened the biological platform and operational capabilities across the value chain. The next phase focuses on harvesting improved returns from this strengthened asset base, supported by a sharpened capital allocation framework.
“Substantial investments over time have strengthened our upstream performance and upgraded our industrial platform across the integrated value chain. We are now positioned to translate these improvements into higher returns and stronger free cash flow,” said chief executive Henning Beltestad.
NOK 50bn revenue
The group is seeking to increase revenue from the NOK 34.4bn made last year to NOK 50bn by 2030 and raise the VAP S&D segment’s operating profit to NOK 2bn (2025: NOK 1.29bn).
Lerøy, which is also the world’s fourth-largest Atlantic salmon farmer after Mowi, SalMar, and Cermaq, also aims to increase harvest volume from the record high of 195,600 gutted weight tonnes last year to 220,000 gwt by 2023, based on existing licence capacity.
'More robust than ever'
“Lerøy is stronger, more integrated and operationally more robust than ever,” said Beltestad.
“Today we are serving high quality seafood to customers and consumers in more than 80 countries across the world. Our industry-leading value chain integrates downstream demand with material upstream volumes and sourcing capabilities following significant investments. With improved operations and a clear cost agenda, we now move into a phase where disciplined execution and capital efficiency will translate into increased returns and free cash flow.
“Our ambitions are built on tangible operational improvements already delivered. Biological KPIs have improved materially since 2022, and we have demonstrated that the ‘Lerøy Way’ drives measurable performance improvements across the group.”
